Empire Hotel directed by Ivo M. Ferreira is featured in the “Macao Special Presentation” section of the 3rd International Film Festival & Awards．Macao (IFFAM), showcasing the unique Macao film styles.

The red carpet and premiere of Empire Hotel were held on 11 December night at Macao Cultural Centre, attended by director Ivo M. Ferreira, producers Christina Soares and Luís Urbano, actors Eliz Lao, Kam Kwok Leung, Sun Jiajun, etc. Maria Helena De Senna Fernandes, Macao Government Tourism Office Director and President of IFFAM Organizing Committee, and Alexis Tam Chon Weng, Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture of the Macau SAR also joined the ceremony, attracting reporters from overseas, Hong Kong, Macao and mainland China.

Ferreira, the director said he got the filming inspiration by his his observations of life and friends around him. Empire Hotel was a film full of love to Macao and it recorded the city’s collective memories. Soares thanked the sponsors, as they were the ones who supported her and the film. Urban was also grateful to this and said Empire Hotel was internationalized. He expressed his gratitude for all the friends who came to the premiere and attended the film festival.

Other actors also shared their feelings when interviewed. Kam Kwok Leung said he watched Ferreira’s Letters from War in 2016 Christmas, and realized that the director was very talented and unique. He was glad to join this film. Eliz Lao said the rhythm of this film was different from Hong Kong films. She and Sun Jiajun also hoped the audience would like this film.

Macao Special Presentation – Empire Hotel

Maria’s home has always been the Empire Hotel, in a traditional neighborhood of Macao where clothes hang between neon lights, and an entangled net of electric wires takes over the streets. With her aging father living there, the burden of keeping the decrepit hotel running stands on her shoulders. She sings Fado in a Casino where gambling and prostitution go hand in hand, but money is scarce and real estate speculators become insistent. That is when Chu arrives, a mysterious young man with an obsessive interest in Maria.